He gazed at her
by luvmoonwater
Summary: Hi people, sorry it took so long for me to update..... School has been real hectic for me, to shorten it up. Please keep reviewing, that's my motivation! Don't hold back either.... Be honest! thanks
1. He gazed at her

**He gazed at her….**

He gazed out at her from his room, hoping in his mind that one day she would be his, to have and to hold. She walked to the river with him in her mind, praying in her heart that one day she could tell him what she felt inside. He went out to follow her; making sure he was not seen or heard. He hid behind a tree waiting to see what she would do…. She stepped into the river, slipping out of her clothes in the process. She began to wrap herself in water, and wash away the dirt from her skin. He was hypnotized to her body, like the moon on the ocean surface. Admiring her brown wavy hair, swaying softly on her mocha colored skin. He just stood there out in the open, for the world to see. He was being held captive by the girl's soft yet subtle look in the river. He began walking towards her unconsciously, and finally awoke from the trance; when he felt cold and surrounded by liquid. He looked down to find his pants were _soaked _in water, and she was but mere feet away from his open arms….. She had not noticed anything, except a few ripples in the water.


	2. She thought nothing of it

She thought nothing of it, but turned her head slightly to see what had made the water move. As she turned her head she noticed a tall, mesmerizing figure…. He did not know what to do, so he stood there hoping that she would not notice anything. She turned not just her head, but her whole body; while still being wrapped in water. Their eyes met, and she dropped her arms; releasing the water from her power and gazed at the man in front of her. He was lost in her gaze, blue eyes that **glowed, **like the sun in the moons brilliance. He took a step closer, not fighting the urge to touch her bare skin… She stood there not knowing, not comprehending what to do. She saw that face but only in her dreams that he would come back to her. She couldn't believe, she wouldn't believe he was there. As he walked towards her dropping his arms along the way, to find himself but one foot away from her naked self…. She watched him, curious to what he would do and did not intend to leave.

He reached out to her, wanting to feel, to remember her skins touch against his hand. She felt his hand on her cheek, feeling the smoothness and texture of her skin and put her whole face in his right hand. He stepped closer and closed his eyes, as he recalled the soft skin on his… She turned her head and found her lips on his palm; whispering his name "Zuko…" He opened his eyes and took her face in both hands, "Katara?" She lifted her head and stared into his eyes… "Zuko… is it you?" She looked at his left eye, remembering the painful memory that scar possessed. But she did not realize that her fantasy was indeed reality. He took her into his arms, forgetting that she was naked, and folded her into a long, tight hug. "Oh Katara, it's been so long, I can't believe it's you…. I can't believe I'm holding you…. I can't…." She realized she wasn't in the appropriate attire to reacquaint her with him, but could not dismiss his gesture. She returned the embrace and pressed her bare chest, to his. Before too long, she released herself to look at him. "What are you doing here? I thought you were in the Fire nation…" She looked down, displeased with herself, for recalling a sad memory. "I thought you, forgot about me…."


	3. He sought out to touch her

He sought out to touch her, comfort her; he couldn't believe what he had just heard; how could he ever forget her. How could he live without remembering her face, her memories, and her body that swayed like a candle flame whenever she walked? "What? How could I forget you?" He rubbed his thumb along her cheek, wiping her tears away. She looked up, not meeting his eyes. "It doesn't matter anymore…. Don't worry… about it." She looked down again, still not realizing her present state of nudity. "Katara… after the war, they offered me the throne. I didn't know what to do…. By the time I had turned the down, you were gone, and I didn't know where you went…" She turned her face in his hands, feeling the inside of his palm against her lips. "I'm sorry, Aang offered me a position in the Earth kingdom, I couldn't refuse it, and I thought it was a nice opportunity".

He stared at her, not knowing what to say; so he lifted her head to meet his gaze and gave her a soft kiss on the cheek. "It's fine; you're here, I'm here that's all that matters…" She looked at him, not knowing what to do. "Zuko….. How can you just act as if nothing has happened? How can you stand looking at me?" He pulled her into a firm embrace. "I love you Katara, I have never forgotten you. I stand here before you because I thought you were some dream my mind had made up, but it was you….. You kept me going, I searched the world for the sky bison; and when I found it the Avatar said you were wandering around…. I thought I had lost hope…" He kissed her ear, gentle and soft. "I'm so glad I found you, and have you here in my arms, safe." She looked at him, not fully releasing herself from his body. "I don't understand I tried so hard to forget you. It was painful, to imagine you with Mei or Jen, I wouldn't believe it…. But I tried to picture my new life, and the great things I could accomplish." She gazed at the water and then back up at his face.

"I've tortured myself for trying to get you out of my mind. But it never worked; you were always there, just lifting my spirits whenever I was down…." He looked at her, in pure amusement and relief. "You thought I would go with Mei or Jen, really?" He chuckled at her assumption; he looked deeply in her eyes and searched for some unforeseen emotion that was not presented on her face. "Katara…. Haven't you realized that I'll **never **let you go; I love you too much to see you leave me and never come back." She looked at his face, searching for truth, seeking even the littlest lie to run and never come back. She found nothing. There was no evidence, no proof that demonstrated the slightest fib. She leaned into his face, and kissed him; soft and gentle, without much emotion. But he quickly overlooked that tiny flaw, with passion and anger; he longed for her to be beside him, to hold her and protect her when needed. They moved and molded into each other, leaving no gap or entry for any person to go in between. They searched, inside and out of their mouths to find both comfort and pleasure; to fill their loss. She released herself, gasping for breathe in the process. He looked at her, stunned what had just happened… "How…. do you…. feel….for me?" She looked at him, wondering what the kiss had signified to him. "What do you…..mean?" He sighed. "Do you love me?" She stared at his lips, and inched forward to whisper at him. "I…..feel for you….very much." He stepped back to look at her. "But…do you love me?" She contemplated his question, to find the best possible answer. "I did…very much. But when we weren't together, I tried to forget you; and seeing you again just brought back heart ache and memories." He stared at her. "So, you don't love me." He looked at the water and took another small step back. "I don't want to get hurt. I…."


	4. Zuko

**Zuko…..**

"I do love you Zuko… but you must understand, it's been a while… and only in my dreams have I thought of you coming back…." She looked at him cautiously. His eyes remained fixed on the water. "Well, I'm sorry I found you and came back… I'll leave now." He turned away and began walking a few paces away from her. She looked at him, with an utmost confusion and panic. "No! Zuko, wait!! I didn't mean it the way it came out…. I have missed you but you need to give me time…I just saw you, after two years…" He turned his head slightly, as to speak to her. "…How do I truly know that? How do I know that that's how you feel?" He turned his whole body facing her, recognizing her nudity but pushed it out of his mind. "I have never stopped thinking of you, Katara. I pledged that I would find you and never let you go….don't fool me when I'm vulnerable and then ignore me when I'm not…." She gazed at his face, and then looked down at the water. "I'm not trying to fool you, I'm being truthful. I don't want to see you leave, but I want to spend time with you… rekindle the flame; if you will."

His lips turned the shape of a small grin, barely recognizable. "Really, where would you like to go? What do you want to do? There's so much that's happened." She suppressed a giggle, and smiled gingerly at his sudden anxiety to get closer to her…. "Wow, that was a sudden change of heart?" He grinned at her, so pleased at the tone their conversation had turned. "I don't want to waste any time…. Come on, put your clothes back on; I can't fight urges forever." She looked down at her form, and surrounded herself with water immediately. "You knew, and you didn't tell me!!" She turned toward the shore, and stood with the clothes in her hands. "Urges for what?" She suddenly recalled his last remark, before she grabbed her clothes. He looked at her knowingly. "You know what, do you need for me to explain…." She blushed, and ran toward the nearest tree to put on her clothes. He got out of the river, and began drying his pants with his fire bending. She stepped out from behind the tree and gawked at him. "What?" He asked with curiosity in his tone. She stared at his hands. "It's just been so long since I've seen you, let alone any other person fire bend…." She looked down at her hands, and was frightened when she felt two hands slither around her waist. "I'm sorry I frightened you, I didn't mean to…." He hesitantly kissed her neck, and nuzzled it…. "I've missed you **so **much, you don't even know….." She blushed slightly at his comment. "….I've missed you too…" She turned her head slightly to press her cheek to his lips. "I love you…. and… thank you, for finding me." He spun her around and placed his lips gently onto hers. His lips parted slightly, to show that he wished for more. She stuck her tongue in his mouth, and brushed his lower lip. He moaned at the quick gesture, he caressed her tongue with his own and tightened his arm around her waist, so she wouldn't break loose. She began moving her head to the side and sucking his lower lip... He backed away, releasing her in the process and moved several paces back. "What is it?" She asked, suddenly nervous and sad that the kiss ended so abruptly. "I'm not sure, I thought I heard something." He looked at her thoughtfully, showing that he was sorry for the sudden end he had just given her. "What did you hear?" She asked suddenly curious to whatever noise that startled him. He stiffened a bit. "I thought I heard…. Azula….I'm not sure why but I thought I did." She gazed at him, wondering how that came to be. She waited for him to speak again.

"Ever since I left the Fire nation, I've always felt uneasiness about Azula… thinking that she may be following me….." She stared at him, waiting for him to continue. "She was locked up after the death of Ozai; she was released a year ago….all I know is, she's not allowed any ranking in the Fire nation…. I don't want her to come back into my life…" His eyes met hers, and she ran to him… "I….I….I'm sorry I left you…. I shouldn't have, you could've been in the palace; safe from your sister…." He placed one arm around her waist, pulling her close and the other hand reached out to caress her cheek. "…If I was hiding in some palace, I wouldn't have found you….and I wouldn't be here right now." He kissed her cheek and released her from his hold, but still held her hand as they walked to a nearby Motel for food and sleep.


	5. Zutara

**Next….**

They reached the little town, and searched for a motel/ inn or anything, but found no luck…. So they returned to the woods and decided that it would be best to rest and then go searching for a motel in the morning. Zuko got right to work with the fire and Katara set up her bunk that she would now have to share with Zuko. "What are we going to eat?" Zuko suddenly asked with curiosity. "Ummmmm…. Is fish ok? I don't have anything else." He grinned at her kind gesture and went to give her a hug. She returned the embrace and titled her head to his shoulder…. "Zuko, what are we going to do now? I mean now that we're together, where are we going to go? What are we going to do?" He looked at her, straight into her eyes and said. "What do you want us to do? We could get married; have a little place of our own. We could tour the world or visit the Gang or….." She put her finger to his lips. "Those are great ideas, but aren't we too young to get married I don't want to just settle and raise kids by 20." He kissed her finger that was on his mouth, and put it to his cheek. "I love you Katara, I don't care what or where we go.

I just don't want to be without you…." She smiled at his comment and slowly kissed him.

He grasped her waist and pulled it towards him. She wrapped her arms around him and bit his bottom lip. He moaned and forced his tongue into her mouth, she whimpered. She knotted her hands into his hair, and pushed their faces together. He loosened her hair and let it drape to her back. They swayed and danced to the movements of their mouths. She released herself from his embrace, gasping and for air. He looked at her with a controlled gaze, and smirked. He grabbed her waist and pulled her towards him for seconds. He tilted his head to kiss her neck and cheek; he chuckled when she flinched to his sudden reaction. He cupped her face with one hand and kissed her nose. She sighed and looked up at him. "I… love you Zuko." He smiled a wide grin at her, flashing his teeth. "I knew you did, let's eat." He let go of her face and held her hand as they walked to the fire. They ate in silence, with a couple of glances to one another. He walked up to her and lifted her up to sit on his lap. "You tired?" She simply nodded, letting the fish go down her throat. He kissed her neck and saw her shiver slightly on him. She got up and took his hands. "Let's go to bed." He lifted the blanket and tucked them inside; he wrapped one arm around her waist and nuzzled her neck. "Good night, love." He whispered in her ear. "Good night Zuko." She smiled and rested her hand his….


	6. New Beginnings

**New day…..**

Zuko was the first to wake up; he quietly got out of the bunk and headed toward the forest. He quickly gathered some twigs and branches, and went back to camp. When he returned he found that his love was not there; he dropped the gatherings and ran toward the river. He found her in the river bending the water to get fish, he sighed in relief to find her there…. She turned her head, to the slight noise he made and smiled to find him standing there watching her. She returned her focus to the river and created several bubbles to envelope the fish, she quickly froze the bubble with a gentle movement of her wrist. She moved the frozen bubbles toward the shore and placed them softly on the ground. He stared at her, in awe at what he had just witnessed. She smiled to herself and walked toward the frozen bubbles on the shore; she defrosted the bubbles and placed seven fishes in her basket.

They walked together toward their camp, to prepare for breakfast. "Did you find wood?" She hesitantly asked him. "Yes, I did. Why do you hesitate to ask?" He asked her calmly. "Well, because I don't know how you will react sometimes, it frightens me to be nervous around you…" He walked to her, removed the basket from her arms and held her face. "Never be scared of me, the things of my past are my past. If I do something that intimidates you, are makes you feel uneasy; let me know. I don't want you to feel that way, ever." She gingerly smiled at him, and kissed him on the cheek. He gave her an embrace and picked her up; he set her down on a log and went to prepare breakfast. He began with building a fire, he brought his pan out to fry the fish and set it on the fire…. She sat quietly on the log, watching him. He removed the fish from the pan and placed one fish on each dish, he gave one to her and kept the other for himself…. Once again, they ate quietly and glanced at one another several times. She set her finished plate on the ground and began packing her belongings. He quickly finished his meal, and went to help her pack their belongings. "So, where are we headed?" She asked. "I was thinking one of the Earth Kingdoms or if you prefer, the Water Tribe." He smiled at her; she smiled back at his kind request to visit her home land. "That would be nice, but I would like to go to the Earth Kingdom, I want to reacquaint myself with some old friends." He glanced at her. "What old friends?" She stopped folding her clothes and looked at him. "This kind family, that the Gang and passed by on the way across the Serpents pass." He looked down; remembering the

Serpents pass is Fire Nation territory. "Oh, ok…" She moved towards him and enveloped herself in his arms. "Don't take it the wrong way; I helped the woman give birth…. She named her child Hope." She looked at him, hoping to see him understand. He tightened his hold on her, and kissed her head. "I'm sorry I reacted that way, I thought you met some Earth Kingdom boy or something…" She looked at him surprised at his response, and blushed at the memory of Haru. She contemplated the idea of telling him of Haru, but decided to tell him so that there are no secrets between them. "I did meet an Earth Kingdom boy, actually two. But nothing happened; they just helped at different times…. Don't take it the wrong way." He leaned his head onto her shoulder, and kissed her collarbone. "If you say nothing happened, nothing happened. I trust you." She smiled at the comment and leaned her head onto his….. They stayed like that for a while before they realized they have delayed their trip…. "We should get going." He stated. "Yea, let's go…" He kissed her gently on the lips and grabbed the packed bags. She knelt down and fastened the bunk, and pulled it on top of her back. He turned to her. "We should switch…. I don't want you to get exhausted." She smiled and generously removed the bunk from her back and took the two bags, filled with clothes and pans…. Then; they were on their way, to the Earth Kingdom of Omashu.


	7. The Arrival

**The Arrival ……**

They reached the city in a matter of days, and unloaded their things at a motel at the entrance of the city. "I'm tired…." She said while massaging her neck, and collar. Zuko looked at her, and grinned at the scene before him…. His love, sitting on the bed, head tilted to the side, massaging her neck to ease her pain. He couldn't stop feeling happy whenever he saw her, no matter what condition she's in. He walked towards the other side of the bed, as quietly as possible and massaged her neck. Placing his firm hands over hers, and adding heat from his fire bending, soothed her in a way that made her moan in pleasure…. He placed gentle kisses along her neck and collarbone, each filled with heat and spice from bending and his recent meal of spicy brown rice. She was so drawn to his touch that she leaned back and pushed against his chest that made him pull back so that both were comfortable.

Katara slowly opened her eyes, to see Zuko above her, watching and smiling at her with the greatest sincerity and care. He reached down for her arms, and wrapped them around his neck; he moved down towards her and kissed her….. Kissed her with passion and love, with care and willingness without doubt, and not holding back. She kissed him back, tangling her fingers into his hair, and leaning into his mouth. They remained this way for what seemed like four hours…. But, they stopped to breathe and get ready for bed. "Does you neck feel better?" He asked slyly as she got off the bed. "Yes, as a matter of fact it does…. Thank you" She grinned and went to change. "What will you do once you find the family?" He asked in sudden curiosity and recognition of where they were….. "I'm not sure, but I think I will ask how their doing and….. Introduce to them my love." She opened the door just a little to wink and blow a kiss. He smiled to himself and thought that he was a _very _lucky man.

She stepped out of the bathroom in a light blue nightgown with the water tribe symbol in the middle, colored in dark blue, and her hair hanging loose onto her shoulders…. He stared at her, and watched her every movement as if memorizing it for eternity…. to never forget this moment. She quietly tucked herself in bed, and looked at him…. "What?" "Nothing…. I just am so happy to have you here with me… I'll never let you go." He crawled over the bed towards her, and wrapped his arms around her, kissing her head, cheek, lips, neck, collarbone…. And even arms, and hands. She blushed when he nuzzled or kissed her in a certain weakness spot…..and pleaded for more when he pleasured her very nice.


End file.
